A Midnight Swim
by IheartJack0023
Summary: "What's the point of a mermaid who can't swim?" One-shot. [Zoro x OC]


"What's the point of a mermaid who can't swim?" Asked a cat aloud—a black cat who currently sat on the railing of the Thousand Sunny staring out at the ocean longingly. Her ears twitched as she heard the sound of hearing footsteps—Zoro, she thought, as she heard a swaying sound that could only be caused by the movement of the three swords that always sat at his side. Knowing who it was, she didn't turn to look around. She sat motionless except for the tail swishing behind her. He stopped next to her and she saw him with the corner of her eyes lean down with his elbows on the same railing that she was sitting on.

"What's the point of a swordsman with no sword?" He asked her, counteracting her question with his own. She turned her head to him, tilting it to the side to signal her confusion. "He wouldn't be as deadly without a sword, but that doesn't mean that he wouldn't be able to fight."

"Ah," she said in understanding. "But it's not the same." Zoro put his hand on the cat's head, scratching it.

"You really need to stop dwelling on it, y'know. You'll only make yourself more upset." The cat purred as she leaned into his hand.

"You're so sweet, Zoro," she told him. The swordsman blushed at the compliment and pulled his hand away from the feline.

"Sh-shut up. No, I'm not," he argued. The cat just giggled. "Coralia," he started, once she had quieted down. "Aren't you exhausted from being in that form all day?" The cat pressed her ears against her head and turned her head away from the man.

"I can handle it," she said.

"You shouldn't overexert yourself."

"Follow your own advice!" She hissed.

"Eh," he rubbed the back of his neck. "That's different."

"It's not different at all!" The two sat in silence, listening to the sound of small waves crashing against the ship.

"Well," said Zoro after some time. He turned his face away from her as a blush creeped onto his cheeks. "Maybe I just like seeing you since you're very pretty; not that that's the only reason I like seeing you, but— ." The cat giggled and then turned into a white-haired mermaid with a dress long enough to cover most of her tail. She leaned over and planted a kiss on his cheek, which made him shut up and his blush grow.

"Well, why didn't you just say so, Zoro?" The mermaid turned her gaze back to the ocean, flicking her tail up and down in the air. She started humming a soft tune as a sadness settled in her eyes.

Zoro couldn't help the frown that settled on his face. He hated seeing her so sad all the time; always longing for something that would always remain out of her reach. Her words echoed in his head: 'what's the point of a mermaid who can't swim?' That wasn't the real question he realized. It was less like 'what's the point of a swordsman without a sword?' And more like 'what's a swordsman if he can never use a sword?' Coralia felt like a fish out of water—literally. As an anchor—like Luffy, Chopper, Robin and Brook—she would sink, not swim. And though, unlike the others, she'd be able to breathe underwater, it didn't change the fact that she would never be able to swim again.

Zoro sighed. He hated seeing her so sad all the time; he wanted to see her smile.

He stood up straight as an idea popped into his head. He removed his swords, letting them drop on the floor. Coralia turned to look at him wondering why the man who always kept his swords by his side had just thrown them down like that. She watched him climb and stand on top of the railing, gaze set ahead of him.

"Zoro?" She questioned. He turned his head to the side to look at her and held out his hand toward her. He saw the questioning look in her eyes as she looked up at him.

"Do you trust me?" He asked her.

"Of course," she said. Understanding what he meant, she grabbed onto his hand and before she knew it, he had thrown her onto his back and jumped into the water.

Coralia felt a rush as her body hit the cold water. She gripped onto Zoro's shoulder tightly not wanting to sink straight down. Her eyes moved back forth rapidly looking at everything around her—all the different types of sea creatures. She found herself greeting most of them with a smile on her face. She swished her tail back and forth instinctively, mimicking the motions of swimming.

Zoro felt the corner of his lip twitch upwards when he turned his head slightly and caught sight of her bright eyes and large smile. He swam as far down as he could, taking into consideration how long he could hold his breath, but he tried his hardest to hold it for as long as he could. When he reached the surface again and gasped for air, she maneuvered herself to be in front of Zoro so that she was facing him, her hands still on either shoulder. He was glad to see that the smile was still on her face.

"You're so sweet, Zoro," she told him, pulling herself slightly upward and giving him a short, but sweet kiss on the lips. Zoro's eye widened at the action and a blush settled over his face at the same time as her. She gave him a soft smile before moving her arms to be around his neck and burying her face into his neck. Zoro placed his lips on the top of her head while his fingers ran through her smooth, wet hair.

"We should do this more often," she told him.

"Whenever you want," he said, his voice muffled by her hair.


End file.
